Better by Design? – UK Intellectual Property Consultation

How does the UK's design law operate in practice? What are the benefits, disadvantages and availability of the various remedies available to address design right infringement? What would you do to improve the current design law regime?

These are just some of the questions being asked in a short consultation published by the UK's Intellectual Property Office (IPO) today in association with law firm Speechly Bircham. The consultation aims to provide a better understanding on whether the scope of the law relating to design and the structures and methods of protecting the aspects of design which you consider to be valuable are in your view "fit for purpose", and if not, why not?

Areas to consider include:

how effective the current UK design protection system is seen to be;

whether designers and design based companies believe they can access justice;

the effectiveness of remedies available for design infringement; and

barriers to enforcement of design rights.

The recommendations from the report prepared by Speechly Bircham will inform Government policy.